This invention relates to archery and more particularly relates to a bow accessory that is attached to a compound bow and allows an archer to reduce the drawstring holding weight to zero while the bow remains at full draw of the drawstring.
Archery is a historically traditional as well as a modern sport that is enjoyed for both competition and for hunting. Over the last half century, the compound bow has become a popular option for archers because of its advantageous characteristics. The principles of the operation of a compound bow are described in or evident from U.S. Pat. No. 3,486,495 which is incorporated by reference into this application. This patent is believed to be the original U.S. patent on the compound bow. Since then there have been many other patents for features of compound bows.
As with all bows, the limbs of the bow are cantilever springs that are fixed at their inner ends to a central frame called a riser and attached at their outer ends to a bowstring. The limbs store potential energy as they are bent back, within their elastic limit, by the force of an archer's arm drawing back on the bowstring. The most important characteristic of the compound bow is that the energy stored in its limbs, at a selected or standard draw length, is greater than the energy stored in a conventional bow and the force required to hold the bowstring at full draw is not only less than the maximum force that is required to draw the bowstring to full draw but also is considerably less than the draw force required for a conventional bow (which is maximum at full draw). The force that is applied by an archer to a drawstring in order to pull the drawstring back away from the riser of the bow is commonly called the draw weight.
As the bowstring of a compound bow is drawn back, the draw force initially increases but, as the bowstring approaches full draw, the draw force is reduced. That makes it somewhat easier for an archer to hold the bowstring at full draw because the archer is exerting a considerably smaller force on the bowstring than the maximum draw force of the compound bow and at an even smaller draw force than a conventional bow. The “let off” is the draw force reduction for a compound bow and can be as much as 70% to 80%. Additionally, at full draw the energy stored in the limbs is considerably greater than the energy stored in a conventional bow even though the draw force at full draw is considerably less. The ultimate result is that some archers are able to hold the bowstring at full draw with less draw force while simultaneously having more potential energy stored in the limbs for powering the arrow along its trajectory.
When an archer is bow hunting, it is common for the archer to hear game which is unseen or to see game in a location at which the archer does not want to take a shot because it is likely that the arrow will not hit the target game or is likely to hit the game in an undesirable manner. For example, the game may be too far away and beyond the range of an arrow or the game may be partially hidden behind an obstruction, such as a tree or brush. However, when the archer is in that situation, it is desirable to maintain the arrow positioned in the bow and hold the bowstring drawn to full draw until a shot at the game becomes practical. One reason to maintain full draw is to be ready to immediately take a shot at the game as soon as a sufficient opportunity arises. A hunter with a bow does not want to wait to draw back the bowstring until after the game is observed in a position where a shot can be responsibly taken. The reason is that drawing the drawstring generates noise and causes motion both of which can attract the attention of the game and cause it to run away. So a hunter would like to draw the bowstring to full draw as soon as he or she sees or catches a glimpse of the game or otherwise suspects the game to be nearby. After drawing the bowstring to full draw, the hunter would like to hold the drawstring at full draw while waiting for a good shot opportunity. So a second reason for maintaining the bow in the ready, full drawn position is to avoid making the noise or motion of drawing the bow to full draw when the game approaches because that generates a noise or motion that can scare the game away.
Unfortunately, it often takes a substantial period of time for the game to appear in a location where a shot can be responsibly taken. Holding the bow at full draw for a substantial length of time is not a problem for some people, especially people who are younger, stronger and in good physical condition. However, for some hunters it is difficult and/or uncomfortable to hold the bow at full draw for the necessary time interval. Holding a bowstring at full draw can cause discomfort or even pain for the archer while the bowstring is being held fully drawn for an indefinite period of time. For some people it is difficult to even pull the drawstring to full draw and impossible to maintain it in that position for any length of time. Doing so is simply beyond some archer's practical strength and/or endurance. Nonetheless such an archer still has the ability and the desire to continue hunting.
Consequently, there is a need for a bow accessory that would allow an archer to pull a bowstring to full draw and have the bowstring be retained at full draw without requiring the archer to continuously apply an aft-directed draw force on the bowstring in order to maintain the full draw.
It is therefore an object and purpose of the present invention to provide a latching mechanism that allows the archer to pull the bowstring to full draw, actuate the latching mechanism to retain the full draw state of the bow without requiring a force to be applied to the bowstring and then, when the archer is ready to shoot, pull slightly on the bowstring and operate the latching mechanism to release the bow back to its state for normal operation.